Ghost Of a Chance
by viettvnt
Summary: EdXOcScience might be the only answer to everything in the world of alchemy.Or so Ed thinks.But soon,his theory will be proven wrong and it starts with a girl then leads to Homunculis,spirits and all sorts of mishap.Bad sum Im srry but plz read ON HOLD
1. Train Ride Boredom

**Vietvn: I'm bakkk!!! FINALLY!!! With another fanfic!!! But no this isn't the sequel to my first one, im still trying to get that one figured out so in the meantime...my second fanfic :O omG!!! X) My Summary sucks tho but plz read the chapter then judge. Don't like, then u dont havta read, im STILL a newb at this so like i said before, be nice on the reviews, give tips/advice to improve my writing style, grammer error etc. k? that wud help a lot for me cuz i dont wanna go writing crappy stories for all the enjoy lol. So here we go, FMA fanfic, the intro chapter of my second story. (I know how rare these are XD im contributing to the population of these kind of stories XD)**

**Ps. Its also a BleachXFMA crossover but its taking place in the FMA world, ok im srry u hav to read this long authors note so i'll leave now X)**

**Chapter One: Train Ride Boredom**

Sitting on the train, watching the world go by the window, it gets tiring afterwards. Not to mention nauseous too. Well, that's what I think. To others, it might be the only entertainment you have if you're ever traveling by train. I averted my gaze away from the window beside me, watching it any longer might lead me to losing my lunch. I sat by myself in an empty compartment, well...almost by myself. I glanced briefly across my seat. Yup, she was still there, reading her book as always when there's nothing much to do. The woman in front of me that appears to be in her mid-twenties, had long raven black hair that was held up in a ponytail**(A/N: I hav a pic of her, well the link to her pic just go here:****http://images. **and put in the description). If it was untied, it would've reached at least to her hips. Her ruby red eyes had their attention to the book she was reading, I'm not sure what kind of book but it seems pretty interesting to her.

Her name was Kazumi or her old nickname, 'Kazumi the Crimson Moon Butterfly', she wore a traditional kimono like outfit with a long slit running up her right leg and stopping at mid thigh for easy manuvering. On the back of her shirt was an imprint of a butterfly in red and she wore navy blue arm guards that reached halfway up her forearm. She also wielded a katana that was strapped to the right side of her hips. But what's interesting enough is that she was in fact dead. I could see her fine even though she's a spirit but anyone who has a strong sixth sense can see her fine just like I can. Even though she looks young, she is also more than 500 years old.

Me on the other hand, I'm only about 150 years old but look like your average 15 year old girl with shoulder length brown hair with copper brown eyes. My bangs swayed over to the side, leaving a few strands in my face but it doesn't really bother me**(A/N: I hav a pic of her as well, click on the link on my author's page and there's a link to my piczo and find the number, just ask me for the password)**. I was dressed casually in navy blue jeans, a burgandy tank top with a white zip up sweater over it and a red headband. Kazumi and I were on our way to a place called Risembool for our next assignment.

I let out a tiring sigh which Kazumi caught as a hint that I was indeed bored, she lowered her book slightly and now had her attention on me.

" Bored once again Himiko? You better find something to do before you get fidgety. " She said in a monotone but had hints of humor in it. I frowned at her. Even if I did admit that I'm bored, how can I possibly find something to do on this God forsaken train?

" I would but I'm stuck in this ridiculous gigai form. By orders, I'm suppose to act as 'civilized' as possible." I crossed my arms. Kazumi sighed and placed her book down.

" And there is a good reason for that. Hollows don't exactly pop up in the same location all the time so we must use more human transportation. "

" And damn them for that. " I muttered under my breath. Even though it is my job as a Soul reaper of the Soul Society to eliminate all Hollows and help spirits pass on to the Soul Society, I don't like the fact that I have to act like a normal human being. I shifted positions in my seat and Kazumi sighed once more.

" Just try to stay put for a little while longer..." she said before turning back to her book. I knew she was right but I can't help it. I need to do something! Anything!

" And one more thing..." I heard Kazumi whisper behind her book.

" What? " I asked.

" Try to get the people here to stop staring at you like you're mentally ill..." At that remark, I jerked my head upward and took a look around the train and sure enough the little amount of people on it were staring at me. I laughed nervously and gulped, trying to think of some lame excuse.

" Uhh...Don't mind little old me! I'm just reciting a line for a play I have enrolled in, the character I portray is suppose to be a warrior in ancient times! " They just stared at me and shrugged it off, turning away from me and back to whatever they were doing before. I let out a sigh of relief, though that excuse seems to make me think I was completely insane since my choice in vocabulary is perhaps, too precise and formal. I leaned back into my seat boredly, not wanting to look out at the window again. But since I had nothing to do, I decided to stare at the cieling above me. Unfortunately, I grew tired of looking at that too. I turned my head slightly to the side and caught a head of golden blonde hair, probably from the seat behind me. Its a mystery how I didn't notice that person before because most of the seats around me were completely empty.

Well, at least my mind was set to something. I sat up straight and turned my head a little more to see that the person also had a large suit of armor sitting on the opposite side that was facing me. Now I'm not sure if it was considered 'normal' for humans to travel with a suit of armor but who am I to say, there are many weird and strange things in the human world. I turned my whole body around so now I had my knees resting on my seat while facing them. Now I had a clear view of the person that had the seat behind me, well almost. I could see that the person had long golden blonde hair that was braided back and was wearing an outifit all black with the exception of white gloves. The person was also reading a book, on what I do not know of.

Curious to know, I began to read over the person's shoulder. The more I read it, the more I didn't understand it. Something about formulas and the word 'alchemy' or 'alchemic reaction' or somthing related to this 'alchemy' kept reappearing every once in a while. I furrowed my eyebrows in a thinking manner, trying to understand what the book was about but couldn't seem to put my finger on it.

A noise of rustling metal broke me out of my train of thoughts as I looked up to have the suit of armor staring back at me.

" Uhh..." said the suit, it also sounded a bit hollow and a voice of a child. The person who I was reading over their shoulder with looked up to the suit of armor.

" What is it, Al? " I soon realized that the person's voice was a male one.

" Umm..." 'Al' who the person was referring to, kept looking at me as I stared back at it. The blonde boy glanced over his shoulder but probably to find no one there. That was the point when I ducked back behind my seat to avoid being caught in an awkward moment but I listened carefully to their conversation.

" Umm...Al? Was there something behind me? "

" Uh..No brother, not at all...I just thought I saw something but I think my eyes were playing tricks on me... "

" Huh...ok...whatever you say... " That was the end of their conversation. I was grateful that the suit of armor didn't catch me and now I had something to think about other than how bored I am. Its strange that someone would go walking around looking like that. Surely it must attract a lot of attention which leads to feeling a bit awkward. I decided to leave the subject for now and slid back into my seat facing Kazumi again. I slowly began to shut my eyes, hoping that sleep will past time.

**First Chapter i dont blame u if its boring but hey its the introductory, nothing happens yet but wht do u think about it? R&R plz**


	2. A Grave Encounter

**Vietvn: Second chapter of my second story:O lol. Well the story goes on and yea. It might be boring in the beginning but i promise u there will be more action and stuff that will happen cuz i got the whole plot worked out. lol so start reading!**

**Disclaimer: Do you actually think a person like me owns FMA and/or Bleach? No, i wish :P but i do own my OC's k?**

**Chapter Two: A Grave Encounter**

When I woke up, I could faintly hear Kazumi's voice urging me to get up. When I actually decided to get up and rub the sleep out of my eyes, I felt the train was about to move again.

" Himiko! The train! You have to get off! " shouted Kazumi. I jumped quickly to my senses and immediately looked for the closest exit, which was the window. I slid the window up and clambered out of it and onto the station's platform just as the train began to pull away. I sighed in relief as Kazumi appeared beside me.

" Next time, try not to fall asleep on the train! You nearly missed our stop! " scowled Kazumi.

" It wasn't my fault that the train ride was so boring, sleeping was the only thing I could do! " I retorted. Kazumi sighed in defeat, not wanting to get into an arguement, especially in public.

" Alright, alright, whatever. But our goal here is to try to get to the assigned places as civilized as possible. "

" I know, I know...Now, where's the closest graveyard here... " I wondered out loud.

" It said that its near the country side of Risembool..."

" Ok...that was specific..." I said sarcastically, looking around the greenery of fields and hills and more fields and hills. I pulled out my cellphone**(A/N: Like the one Rukia has)** and recalled my last text message, ' _A lingering soul of a mother is still near her grave and a hollow will likely attack her, go to her grave and stop it. ' _" Huh...that's all it says about our assignment. Other than the fact that the grave is suppose to be in Risembool. "

" Well, we better start heading somewhere. And maybe help spirits along the way just in case the same hollow might attack them. " suggested Kazumi. I nodded in agreement and we headed torwards the nearest town and hopefully, find a place to rest for a while until night came. By then I can get out of my gigai form.

We followed a dirt road that went past farmland and crop fields and some houses on the hill. It was a peaceful town with nice people that carried on working a farm life. Usually I would imagine the human world to be more...industrialized then peaceful like this, where the grass were green and there were many fields instead of tall buildings. We passed by a cemetery, it was small but there were a handful of tombstones there. I felt strong spirit energy coming from it but I didn't sense a hollow anywhere. I made a mental note of where the cemetery was located and continued on walking. I soon ended up at a small house with the sign 'Rockbell Automail' in front of it.

' _Automail? I wonder what that is...' _I wondered to myself, I began to ponder on that until I settled the conclusion of it being a type of communication the humans have**(A/N: Like mail that does the sending itself XD). **I then caught sight of that boy and his armor cladded brother walking torwards the house. I stopped in my tracks and quickly hid behind a tree and peered out to see if they noticed me or not. I never would have thought of meeting those two again but I also never would have thought of how short the boy really was now that he was standing instead of sitting, maybe perhaps shorter than me and I'm pretty short for a gigai form of 15.

" It's been a while since we visited Winry eh Al? "

" Yeah, it has been. Mustang was nice enough to give us a week without assignments. "

" That means we can continue researching the Philosopher's stone but right now, it's time for a yearly check up for my automail. Gotta see if anything needs maintenance. " They both walked up the steps of the patio and knocked on the door. They waited until after a while, a small, old lady answered it and let them in. I stepped out from behind the tree and still pondered in my head what 'automail' was, again.

" Humans have such a strange way in life. "

" Yes, indeed..." agreed Kazumi, " So...what are we going to do for the time being? " I was about to reply to, ' climb a tree and take a nap ' but was interrupted when I sensed a hollow and to confirm my thoughts, there was a deep roar.

" There's a hollow nearby! "

" Yes there is, I think its over near those old swing sets across that field. "

" Alright. " I got out of my gigai form and was now dressed in the Soul Reaper uniform with my zanpakuto strapped to my waist. I ran torwards the place where Kazumi had told me with her by my side. When we got there, we saw a spirit of a young girl being chased by a hollow which looked like a giant half lizard half snake thing with a mask for a face and it was crawling to chase the girl.

" No matter how many times I see hollows, it just amazes me how uglier they get. " I said before pulling out my zanpakuto which was named 'Crimson Moon Butterfly.' You might have guessed, Kazumi is indeed my zanpakuto spirit.

" Crimson Moon Butterfly, _light my way torwards the moon_! " My zanpakuto was now in it's initial release form and Kazumi was in the sword. The blade is slender**(A/N: Like Rukia's) **with a butterfly design carved into the blade**(A/N: Which is like the butterfly in her pic, you know the one on the hilt of her sword she's holding)** near the tsuba which was black with small, silver butterflies around**(A/N: The image is on my authors page with all these other links and the hilt is crimson red(A/N: Her initial release sword looks like a katana with those features in it but when its not it looks exactly like the one in her picture. Oh and those italic words are her command to release her intial form)** with a red ribbon just above the pommel. I charged torwards the hollow and sliced one of its front legs, that brought some time for the girl spirit to get behind me.

The hollow roared in pain as its blood spewed everywhere and it soon retreated back. It was gone, at least for now. I turned torwards the spirit of the small girl who had been watching the whole time in awe.

" You ok? " The girl looked at me puzzled but nodded her head, " Well then, you better pass on before you get turned into a hollow. " I said before pressing the bottom of my hilt on the girl's forehead. The small seal appeared and there was a bright light briefly shone under the girl as she sank down to the ground. The light stopped and in the girl's spirit place there was a butterfly fluttering away. I sighed and my zanpakuto reverted back to its original state and I sheathed it. The area around the swing set was a bit trampled and looked pretty much destroyed but hopefully no one will notice.

" Hey! " called a voice as I nearly jumped in surprise. Guess all the noise had attracted some attention considering this place was awfully quiet. I turned my head side ways to see the same blonde boy and the suit of armor running torwards me. Knowing they couldn't see me, I walked away and disappeared from their sight**(A/N: Its sort of like the first time Ichigo met Rukia in the city and she just walked away and everything went back to normal...Like the background wasnt hazy and spirit like)**

**Ed's POV**

We finally made it to the area where we heard all the noises but before we could reach there, I caught sight of a girl dressed in black with a sword strapped to her side.

" Hey! " I called out.

" Brother! Wait for me! " The girl turned her head to look at me but then walked away, ignoring us and she magically disappeared after passing a tree. I stopped and looked around the place, it was almost completely destroyed as if a stampede of bulls came through here. Al stopped beside me, also surveying the area.

" What happened here? "

" I don't know Al but I'm certain that it wasn't like this before we came. I remember correctly it's just a plain open field with green grass and an old swing set but now...it's like something blew up here. "

" You're right but what could it be? " I placed my finger under my chin, trying to make sense of anything here but nothing came into my mind that would be possible. Then it came to me; that mysterious girl.

" Hey Al? "

" Yes brother? "

" When we were running here, did you catch sight of a girl dressed in black? "

" Uhh...no...I didn't see anyone here... Why? " I thought it was strange that Al didn't see her but then I thought otherwise that he was too far behind to catch a glimpse before she disappeared.

" It's just that...I definately saw someone here... " I trailed off, maybe my mind was playing tricks on me. Or maybe we've been away from Risembool for so long we haven't noticed the changes until now. Knowing that I'll probably not meet the girl again, I decided to shrug the matter off, well at least for now.

" Ahh...nevermind. Let's just walk it off, wait til its dark, head back to Winry's, spend the night and then head back to Central again to research the Philosopher's stone again. "

" Yeah, ok. " I began to walk away from the area and down the dirt path, retracing memories of my childhood here. How everything used to be so simple before any of this happened but I'm determined to make it all right again. It's the least I could do, especially for Al.

**Back to Himiko's POV**

" Ah geez, the damn thing got away..."

" Which means you are, once again, bored. " completed Kazumi as she 'walked' beside me down the dirt path, well the only good thing was that I was out of my gigai form. I stopped at a big oak tree on the side of the road where I left my limp 'body' and climbed up on it's branches. I rested my back on the trunk while stretching my legs out along the length of the branch. Kazumi floated beside me, watching me boredly.

" Don't tell me you're going to sleep til its dark...you know that hollow can appear again and perhaps devour another lingering spirit. "

" I know but its targeting that particular spirit, what's so special about it anyways? "

" Maybe it possesses some sort of special spiritual energy... " I huffed, I don't want to know but all I know is that I'm going to die from boredom if that thing doesn't appear again so I can kill it and be on my way. I shut my eyes but not before hearing Kazumi sigh and disappear.

**Time Skip! X)**

I woke up once again to find my surroundings illuminated by the moonlight. Which means its dark, which means the hollow will appear, which means I get some action now, finally! I stretched my legs and arms before jumping down from the tree, landing gracefully on the ground.

" Kazumi? "

" What? " Said spirit who had just appeared by my side. I stretched my arms again and cracked my wrist joint to get a more relax feeling instead of a stiff one. I looked from each side of the dirt road, all is quiet and the small houses around me were all dark. That's good because now it wouldn't attract a lot of attention if I find the hollow.

" C'mon, we better head to the cemetery we saw earlier. " I said before walking off in the direction of it. Kazumi nodded and proceeded to follow me. We soon reached there, I briefly caught a glimpse of a spirit of a woman. I figured it was the spirit that was in my text message that I got, she was fairly young and had long brown hair tied in a low ponytail that was resting on the right side of her shoulder. She was dressed in a simple lilac coloured dress with a white apron tied in front. I walked torwards the spirit with Kazumi still by my side.

" Spirit, why do you still linger near your grave? " I said in a stern voice. The woman looked up, startled and surprised at me and Kazumi.

" Y-You can see me? " she asked, her voice was of a mother; soft, sweet and caring. I nodded and walked torwards her, ready to draw out my zanpakuto to send her to the Soul Society but she interrupted me.

" Wait! Please, don't. I'm not ready to go to the underworld..."

" You needn't worry, your soul will be able to rest peacefully in a much promising place; the Soul Society. It is my duty as a Soul Reaper to send your soul to where it is best. " I said.

" But...I just want to see them...just one last time. " she replied, her voice lowered to barely a whisper. I eyed her carefully, usually if a spirit continues to linger here on earth it means that they had 'unfinished business' here, a grudge or something that is preventing them from passing on. And usually Soul Reapers such as myself wouldn't care if the spirit wanted something done or not before they pass on since it's our duty to prevent wholes from turning into hollows. But something about this women just made me think otherwise, I let got of the hilt on my zanpakuto and asked cautiously.

" You are a mother before you died, what is it that you want and what is your name? "

" I want to see my sons again...and my name is Trisha Elric. "

**Dun Dun Duuuunnnnn!!!! It's Ed and Al's mom:O wht will happen next? R&R to find out :P**


	3. A Mother's Wish

**Chapter Three: A Mother's Wish**

I dropped my arms on either side of me and walked torwards Trisha's grave. The headstone had her name on it and the date of birth and death. She seemed pretty young to have died and the fact that she had sons that are still living sort of sparked my curiousity.

" So you want to see you sons? "

" Yes. "

" Do they not visit you often? " I asked gesturing to the withering flowers resting in front of her grave.

" Yes, they do but its not as often as I wanted. " She looked down sadly. I was starting to feel sorry for this spirit but more over, I felt sorry for her sons since they were probably at a young age when she died.

" So...You're sons...Would you care to describe them? " I asked.

" Well...I've only seen one recently then the other, he is the oldest of the brothers...His name is Edward Elric and over the past years I haven't seen much of him or his younger brother until Edward came to visit recently. He's grown so much to be a handsome young man..." She trailed off, a small smile creeping on her lips.

" Really? So how old would they be now? "

" Around 15-16 or so years I believe..." answered Trisha in an estimate. Kazumi smirked and leaned closer to my ear and said in a hush whisper.

" Why? Interested in checking out guys already? I never thought you'd be the type. " Her voice was smuggly and I knew she was teasing me. I turned and glared at her though I felt my face heat up briefly but luckly it was dark enough to conceal the redness of my face.

" So why linger around here any longer? You should move on. " I said. Trisha sighed but shook her head. What do you gotta do to make a ghost leave already?

" I can't, I would feel terrible for leaving them. They must've had a rough life with me gone and I never really got a chance to watch them grow and... " There she goes, trailing off again. But she must really loved her sons that much to still stay. This was going to be harder than I thought.

" I don't mean to be rude or anything, " started Trisha, looking directly at me, " But how is it that you can see me...? Is it some sort of a sixth sense? "

" No, I'm a Soul Reaper. I guide spirits from this world to the Soul Society where they may rest in peace and be reborn. "

" Oh...is that so? "

" Yes, and I'm also here to prevent spirits from turning into hollows. "

" Hollows? " Trisha asked with a confused face.

" Yes, they devour wholes, spirits such as yourself and they take on a form of a monster. That is why it's important to leave as soon as possible before it shows up. " I said while looking around the area to make sure that there were no signs of a hollow. Trisha lowered her head a bit, her eyes held sadness in them. I sighed, I don't know what makes this spirit so special but I can't help but feel sorry for her. But still, Kazumi and I needed to prevent the hollow from eating her. A deep howl erupted around the forest that surrounded us, I glanced around; it sounds near. The earth shook beneath our feet as it became louder and closer. I placed a hand on the hilt of my zanpakuto.

" You need to leave Trisha, it's coming near and if you get eaten, you'll be turned into one of them. "

" But-.. "

" Go! Before it finds you. " I shouted at her. She looked hesitant but nodded anyways and disappeared torwards the forest behind me as the hollow from before appeared in front of me. It growled at me but I was unfazed, it was then that I pulled out my zanpakuto and prepared to fight.

" Alright hollow, let's end this. " It charged at me, along the way attempting to get around me probably to get to Trisha's spirit. I slashed at its leg and it howled in pain, stumbling back before charging at me again. Again, I swung my zanpakuto in one fluid movement and jumped. I got it on its side and its blood splattered the ground.

**Ed's POV**

We just finished dinner and Al was helping Winry do the dishes. Pinako, I don't know where that old hag is but she said something about working in the shop or what not. I was just lazing around in the living room, staring out the window into the dark night where the moon faintly lit the sky.

I finally decided to get up and maybe head out for a walk or something because I was absolutely bored out of my mind.

" Hey Al! Winry! I'm going out for a while. " I called to the kitchen.

" Ok! Don't be out late! " was the reply from Winry. I took that as my cue to walk out the door. I started to walk down the dirt road path, to who knows where I guess but I let my feet take me where it wants. My gaze was casted downwards, the silent night was peaceful except for the few chirps of crickets in the fields. A sudden shake in the earth below disrupted me from my trance as I looked back up. Smoke rose not too far up ahead. I ran torwards it and the closer I got to where I saw the smoke, the more I realized that it was coming from the cemetery.

' _Oh no...Mom! I hope nothing blew up near her grave... ' _When I arrived I was greeted with a sight that left me awe stricken and stay rooted to the spot. I don't know if it was either the girl that was fighting the monster or the monster itself...Wait, scratch that, maybe it was the monster...

I stood still, just watching them fight in a battle. But then I realized that it was the same girl I had seen before; where the old swing set used to be. What is she doing here now? I still couldn't force my body to move but when I finally did, the girl with the sword finally had the monster sliced in half and it disintergrated into thin air. She landed gracefully on the ground again and sheathed her sword back into the case. It was then that I could bring my body to move forward.

" Hey! You there! Stop! " Again, she side glaced at me like she did last time and proceeded to walk away but I was getting suspicious so I had to question her. I ran up to her and blocked her path.

" Hold it right there, I've seen you more than once. Tell me just who are you and what was that thing you just killed? " She stared at me with an expressionless face, even her eyes were emotionless but still she continue to walk as if I wasn't there.

" Hey! I'm talking to you! " I was beginning to lose my temper with her, its as if I'm invisible to her. She didn't even give a second glance before she jumped up into the trees and disappeared into the darkness. I narrowed my eyes at the place she disappeared, something fishy was going on and I don't like it. I went over to mom's grave to see if it was ok. I was glad to find there wasn't a single scratch on it but something red and glowing was perched on it. It was a butterfly. It flew once it caught me staring at it and took off torwards the forest and soon even its luminous glow disappeared in the forest's shadows.

' _Something's going on here...And it has something to do with that mysterious girl...I have a gut feeling that I'll be seeing her again..' _

**Phew...been a while hasnt it? Iono but review, review, review plz and thank u :)**


	4. Back to Central and More Hollow Hunting

**Chapter Four: Back To Central and More Hollow Hunting**

**Himiko's POV**

I breathed in the fresh pine tree air around me, its a bit spicy but it smells nice. I was lazing around on the tree tops again, Kazumi had gone else where, probably to look around the area and maybe find any lingering spirits for me to exorcise.

A soft breeze tustled my hair but that was when Kazumi appeared again.

" Any orders from the Soul Society or are you just going to laze around til you get one? " asked Kazumi, obviously a bit anxious to go into battle again. Her voice and demeanor might be soft and calm but she has a flaw of getting a bit agitated to fight. But who am I to be saying this, it's also one of my flaws too.

" Maybe I will since there's nothing much to do here in Risembool unless you enjoy looking at nothing but sceneries that are nothing more than green. Oh, by the way, have you found Trisha yet? "

" No, she ran off somewhere and I can't exactly sense her spiritual energy. "

" Well me neither. " I closed my eyes and tried to relax my mind but something else popped into thought, " Kazumi, "

" Hm? "

" That boy...Did you think he could actually see me? I mean his eyes were so directed torwards me... "

" Impossible, no human being could see you. We're ghosts in this human world unless you resume your gigai form. "

" Meh, I guess you're right...Maybe he's just delirious " I said, shrugging the matter off. It's most likely I won't be seeing him again so there's no point in worrying about an issue caused by a stranger. A small beeping noise awoke me from my peaceful half-slumber. I pulled out my cellphone again from my pocket and flipped it open.

' _Unexplainable damage has been caused near a military warehouse. Make sure you eliminate that hollow before the military themselves conduct an inspection. Head to Central. '_

_**" **_It seems that hollows are appearing around here more than often..."

" Yeah...I wonder why... " I sighed; sometimes being a Soul Reaper is tiring. No matter how many times you excorcise a ghost they just never stop coming. People need to learn not to die as much nowadays. I sat up straight on the tree branch, my legs dangling underneath me.

" We should get going Himiko. "

" Yeah, yeah, yeah but I ain't as hell gonna take another train ride. I might actually die this time. " I said before I jumped off and landed smoothly on the ground, " But first I gotta find my gigai, I think I left it near the tree..."

" How could you just leave your gigai like that and remember it now?! It could've wandered off by now! "

" Don't worry, it couldn't...Hopefully. " I replied nervously and shunpo'ed back to the tree. Surprisingly, it was still there, sitting peacefully under the tree. I merged with it and spat out the soul candy I had swallowed.

" But I don't wanna take a train! It's so boring! " I complained.

" True, we'll just find other ways then... " Kazumi said. I nodded and took out a soul candy and swallowed it again. I reverted back to my shinigami form/sprit form and my gigai had a life of its own once more, supposedly named Rin.

" Rin, you're gonna take a train to Central City. I'll meet you there ok? " Rin nodded and started to walk torwards the train station, " Alright, that's settled. Now come on Kazumi! " I exclaimed before I transported to Central.

**Ed's POV**

Me and Al left on the train heading back to Central first thing in the morning and we arrived there earlier than we thought. As we departed the train, Major Armstrong greeted us as our escort, again.

" It is wonderful to have you back Edward Elric! And Alphonse Elric! " I chuckled at his cheerful greeting and we both headed to the Library to continue our research on the Philosopher's stone. Armstrong left soon afterwards to do some other military business.

But it seems that my mind was elsewhere instead of in the documents we were looking at and Al seemed to notice.

" Brother? What's wrong? You seem...distracted. "

" Huh? Oh it's nothing really. "

" Brother, you can't lie to me. There's something on your mind. Anything you want to talk about? "

" No, it's ok Al. Don't worry. " I lied then slapping on a reassuring smile, hoping that Al would buy it. But I knew him, we both knew each other too well. Al looked at me hard and long before turning back to the documents he was looking for. Even though he knew something was on my mind, he wouldn't pester on about it if I decided not to talk about.

Well, at least that's a good thing because if I would have told him, I would've made him worry about some stupid issue that might be pointless. All we need to do now is concentrate on finding any leads on the Philosopher's Stone. I stared at the papers in my hand, the words were there but I can't seem to get them through my head.

Something was troubling me and I knew what it was, as hard as I try, I can't get that face out of my head. That mysterious girl in the graveyard in Risembool. And that monster she was fighting. After a few hours of just plain research, I decided to call it a day and maybe head out in Central for a while to get some fresh air. But before Al and I could make it to the end of the hall, a scream that sounded like it belonged to Fuery erupted from within Mustang's office. Now even though I don't plan on seeing the damn bastard with a god complex, I was curious to know what all the commotion was about so I decided to eavesdrop.

" Brother, I don't think it's good to eavesdrop... " whispered Al as we knelt beside the door and I pressed my ear against it.

" Don't worry Al, we won't get caught... "

**Inside the Office**

" Colonel Mustang! It's back! It's back! And I'm sure of it this time! "

" What's back? Tell me! " Demanded Mustang from his desk.

" It's the ghost from the warehouse! I saw it with my own eyes last night! " Mustang slumped his shoulders a bit and his left eye began to twitch in annoyance.

" Fuery..."

" I swear its true! There was also damage at the warehouses! They appeared out of nowhere! "

" FUERY..." Mustang was becoming annoyed with this deja vu act and he definately won't waste his time like before. Fuery immediately ceased his rants on seeing a ghost as Falman, Havoc and Breda all stared at him.

" Kain, do you seriously think that it's a ghost and not hallucinating the warehouse to be number 13 again? " asked Havoc.

" I said it was true! Don't you believe me?! Then come tonight and I'll show you! " said Fuery.

" Fine, fine fine. I'll volunteer to walk the baby home tonight. " joked Falman. Fuery glared at his remark but at least he was glad that someone can come and see for themselves that it was true.

**Outside the Office Ed's POV**

" Ghosts? Che.. " I sniggered, hardly believing what I'm hearing.

" There's no such thing as a ghost, right brother? "

" Yeah, you got that right. " I said but then something in the back of my mind clicked to all of this. I don't know why but I have a weird feeling.

" C'mon Al, let's head out in town for a while.. " I said before getting up and walking away from the door. Al and I wandered around Central til it got dark. At that point, we headed back to HQ to our dorms for the night.

**Next Day**

" COLONEL MUSTANG!! WE SAW THE GHOST!!! " shouted Fuery and Falman at the same time as they bursted into Roy's office. The colonel glanced up from the paper he was reading with one elbow propped on his desk with a look of annoyance written on his face.

" There were these giant footprints and strange noises like tearing metal and then there were claw marking that appeared out of nowhere along the warehouses walls! " exclaimed Fuery on the verge of fainting.

" Its true! I saw it with my own eyes! " added in Falman.

" Enough! I will NOT waste MY time on some pointless ghost myth...AGAIN! It's probably your imagination. " Mustang shouted as he ceased the two from ranting on any longer.

" But-! "

" No! Just drop it and head to the mess hall...You don't want to miss lunch... " commanded Mustang. The two didn't bother to protest any longer, keeping to themselves that they did see what they saw last night and quietly left his office before he snaps again. As they left, Roy sank lower into his chair, sighing tiredly while rubbing his temple to prevent an oncoming migrain. It makes him wonder how they were accepted into the military in the first place. Dealing with a bunch of superstitious idiots was the last thing he needs to top off his mountains of paperwork and the headache. Life was truely, unfair.

**Himiko's POV**

Upon arriving in Central, the oh so civilized city, I began to search for the military warehouse that was haunted by a hollow. The place was rather big, and lots of people were roaming around the streets. Needless to say, being in spirit form is quite handy when it comes to bustling cities. People who you walk by don't push you out of the way when in a rush of some sort nor do you get jumped by some mugger while passing an alley way.

" So...where is this Military head quaters or whatever you call it here?! " I asked after hours of walking around in circles in search of military grounds.

" Umm...I think its over there.. " Kazumi pointed out as I followed her gaze at a giant white building with a green flag and a chimera hanging in front of it. It looked somewhat like a bank building. I stared at the large building not in awe of it's massive size but disbelievingly considering that even a retarded person couldn't miss it in a mile...And I missed it 4 times!

" I feel so stupid... " I muttered under my breath, cursing mentally at how idiotic I was. Kazumi must've heard since she was chuckling quietly to herself. I ignored her chuckles and proceeded torwards the building but I had no intentions on entering it. I looked around, trying to figure out how large the military property was.

" Maybe we should try searching over there.. " suggested Kazumi, gesturing over to the west side. I shrugged and headed torwards the direction. After a few more minutes of searching and walking, we finally came across some warehouses; 12 in total. I surveyed the area as I walked down the path that was directly in the middle of the swarming warehouses. I came across an empty dirt ground beside warehouse number 12 and there were faint imprints of large footprints. As I knelt down closer to inspect it further, I concluded that they indeed belonged to a hollow since were of monstrous size and looked almost animal.

" Yup, definately a hollow is here... " I muttered.

" Look, claw marks that was scratched into the walls... " Kazumi spoke up, looking at the long, thin lines that was etched into the warehouse. I sighed and stood up, resting my hand on the hilt of my zanpakuto.

" Well, I don't sense a hollow around here...Maybe its out wandering the cities or the nearest cemetery looking for spirits to devour. "

" So, what do we do in the meantime? " asked Kazumi, floating beside me.

" Wait til it gets dark I guess... " I said, shrugging carelessly.

" Do you know how long that's going to take?! " exclaimed Kazumi pointing at the clear, blue sky and the brightly shining sun.

" Uhh...A while but bear with me. We're spirits, no need to worry. "

" But what happens when your powers drain?! Then what? "

" I'll revert to my gigai form. " I replied simply. Kazumi gave a tiring sigh then disappeared. I glared at the spot she used to be, _'So she thinks she could leave me here all alone to entertain myself huh? Well, if she's going to be that way then fine'. _I decided to take a walk around the maze of warehouses and found a path that lead to another part of the city where there were a couple of houses and shops. When I was finally getting tired of exploring, I settled myself on a nearby tree not too far away from the warehouses and shut my eyes.

**Ed's POV**

" I'm telling you, the ghost is real! We saw it! "

" Face it, its probably just like last time. It was only your imaginations. " I don't know how long this conversation has been going on but I'm getting pretty annoyed that they kept claiming they saw a ghost or some spirit. First of all, they don't exist and second why would a ghost want to haunt the military grounds? But there was nothing else to do while eating lunch in the mess hall and that conversation seems to be the only one I could hear out of the many other noises.

" Brother, do you really think there's a ghost? "

" Nah, don't be ridiculous Al. You know ghosts don't exist. " Al didn't look too convince but there was nothing more to be said; ghosts don't exist, period.

" Hello, Fullmetal. " I inwardly shuddered at the voice because I knew EXACTL Y who it belongs to. Mr. Snide-comments-with-a-god-complex.

" Oh, hello Colonel Mustang. " greeted Al. I remained quiet and refuse to look at the smug look on his face, which he always seems to have on whenever I'm around.

" Hello Al and no greetings from you? " I knew that question was directed at me even if I wasn't facing torwards him. I can already imagine that smirk on his face, it makes me want to punch it. I heard a chuckle and then him taking a seat across from me.

" So Fullmetal, heard any good ghost stories lately? " It was then that I decided to finally talk to him.

" If you mean the one Havoc and Fuery saw at the warehouses then sure, what about them? "

" Do you think they're true? "

" Of course not, there's no such things as ghost. You don't honestly believe in them do you? " I asked, I couldn't keep the corner of my mouth from twitching into a slight smirk. I mean come on, the Colonel Roy Mustang believes in ghosts? Ha!

" After a little incident relating to that subject, I don't think there is and still don't. "

" So what's with bringing up this subject anyways? " I asked, not really getting the point of this.

" Why don't you and Al go check out the warehouses tonight, see if you can find any other paranormal activities going on there. "

" And what makes you think I'm going to waste my time on something like that and why can't you go yourself? "

" Oh don't worry Fullmetal, I'm sure sooner or later you'll check out the area since they are military properties and I can't exactly go there since I got paperwork to do. "

" Hmph, as if. We've got better things to do, like researching on the stone. And speaking of which...Later Mustang... " I said while getting up and walking out of the mess hall with Al following me. If the Colonel thinks I'm going to go there any time soon, its never gonna happen I can garuntee that. We headed straight for the library and began our daily search for any information related to the Philosopher's stone. I don't how long it's been since that afternoon but time sure flies because before you know it, its dark already**(A/N: Little Time skip there, srry its a bit boring but the characters don't do much in daylight...well not yet so bear with me )**

" Brother, we should head back to our dorms now. It's getting late. " I agreed to that with a yawn and nodded my head, I got up and placed the books back where I found them. Al and I were about to head back to our dorms when a loud crashing noise caught my ears. It sounded far away but we were close enough to catch it.

" Hey Al, did you hear that? "

" Yeah, it sounds like its coming from around the back of the library. " **(A/N: Bear with me I don't know where the heck the warehouses are either )**

" Let's check it out. " I said and ran out of the library and torwards the source of the noise. There were more noises when I got closer to wherever the hell it was. Metal screeching, a few crashes and what sounded like large feet pounding the ground. When I finally figured out where they were all coming from, I realized that it was in the huddles of warehouses. Everything was quiet now as I stood in the entrance to the maze, which was pretty strange considering all the noises that I heard, it could've woken up the whole city.

" This is strange, what the hell is going on...? "

" I don't know, the noises were coming from here a while ago... " Al was looking from side to side cautiously, just in case if whatever that was making the loud noises comes out and attacks us, we're ready. I glanced briefly from left to right too but caught nothing but darkness and the white luminous rays of the moon here and there, lighting the warehouses. That's when I caught sight of it...


	5. You Can See Me?

**Chapter Five: You can See Me?**

**Still Ed's POV**

' _I've seen that before...back in Risembool in the cemetery...but how...?..why? ' _I thought as I stared at it as it danced in the air. It was that same butterfly I saw. It fluttered calmly in the air in front of me, I couldn't help but be stuck in a trance just staring at it. Its red glow made it seem brighter in the faint glow of the moonlight. The crimson butterfly drifted by and slowly faded away in the dark shadows.

" What...What was that? Where'd it come from? " asked Alphonse, clearly confused.

" I saw it before..."

" Huh? You did? "

" Yeah...back in Risembool in the cemetery. " I replied, the butterfly still seem to hold me in a trance as I said that. But what came next was even more surprising to me. A swift wind seared through my skin that made my spine tingle and from the wall of the warehouse beside me, a figure emerged. It was as if the person was a spirit, they just walked through the wall. I nearly jumped out of my skin when that happened, I turned torwards the third person that so happened to join us just recently. The moon illuminated the face of the person and soon I come to realize that it was the mysterious girl back in the cemetery with that monster. I stared at her, mouth slightly agaped. She didn't seem to notice me or Al beside her, she stared on ahead and gripped her sword that was strapped to the right side of her hip with her left hand. I finally recovered from my shock and surprise when she spoke softly.

" It's getting close, I can feel it. " 

" What is? " spoke up Alphonse almost just as quiet. Instead of responding, she began to advance forward. I shook myself out of my subconscious and ran up to her before she would disappear like she did last time I tried confronting her. She seemed suspicious and she might be the one who's causing the noise so I decided to take her as an enemy for now. Once I was about a foot away from her, I grabbed her by the shoulder and shoved her into a nearby wall. She gave a grunt as I had her pinned up against the wall with her back facing torwards me with her hands securely behind her.

" Alright, who the hell are you? Are you the one who's causing all this trouble or what? And don't play dumb cuz I've seen you before back in the cemetery in Risembool so answer! "

" Brother! She didn't do anything! "

" How could you know for sure Al? She might be sent by someone. For all we know, she could be an enemy. " I said to Al. The girl was silent before she turned her head around as much as I would allow her with surprised eyes as she began speaking finally AND directly to me.

" You...just shoved and pinned me to this wall. But how can you do that? I'm not supposed be seen by human beings, are you saying you could see me? " Now that caught me off guard, I was confused at what she said. It's as if she's talking like she's suppose to be a ghost or something but I could see her just fine like a normal person.

" What are you talking about? I could see you clearly and who you calling human being?! You're a human too you know... "

" On the contrary, I'm not. " She replied calmly and before I knew it, I was the one being pinned on the wall. Apparently, she's one to recover from her shock quickly. She used the wall to flip over me and landed behind me before I even had time to react. I shook out of her grip and swiped at her with my automail arm but she jumped back a fair distance to avoid it, her fingers grazing over her sword's hilt and she was in a defensive position like I was.

" Brother! Please, fighting isn't always the answer... "

" Al, you heard her. She's not human so who knows what she might do to us. " I said in a scowl to Al, I then turned back to the girl dressed in black again, " So who the hell are you? Are you some sort of Homunculis? " I saw her face change from a serious one to a confused one like back when I pinned her on the wall for the first time.

" A Homunculi? What on earth is that? " She questioned but then her confused face struck with realization, " I remember you now, you're the one I saw at the cemetery. "

" Yeah, that was me alright. Gee, nothing sure gets passed you. Considering you just disappeared like I wasn't even there! "

" But I thought surely you wouldn't be able to see me since no ordinary human beings can so why should I bother talking to you? I thought perhaps you were delusional. "

" Hey! I AM NOT!! " I shouted angrily. She seemed to have lowered her guard down a bit because her left hand that was hovering above her sword slowly lowered to her side. She stood up straight and her eyes seemed like they were seeing right through my soul. I stood my ground and kept strong, not letting a small gesture like that fool me.

" Answer my question! Who are you?! " I demanded. The girl in front of me sighed as if she's tired of saying the same thing over and over again. I was on my last straw before she finally spoke.

" I'm not sure whether or not to tell you but I guess I will since you want to know. And clearly you won't stop pestering me about it anytime soon. I'm a Shinigami. " When she told her answer to me, I was confused. I never heard any race called the 'Shinigamis'. She must've sensed my confusion and Al was dead silence about it so I guess he didn't have a clue either.

**Himiko's POV**

Oh god...What did I get myself into? I heaved a sigh, clearly these guys don't have a CLUE what a Shinigami is. It literally translate to 'Death God(s)' but that would probably freak em' out so I'll just tell them the simpler term.

" I'm a Soul Reaper. " I finally said. They seemed to get it...Well some what. The short blonde one was staring at me like I'm retarded or something and its starting to annoy. It was after a few minutes before he finally found his voice again instead of giving me these looks.

" A...Soul Reaper? I heard of a Grim Reaper before but nothing like that... " I mentally sweatdropped, this guy is really starting to bug me.

" It works the same way. I'm a Shinigami in the 13 division of the Soul Society. My duties are to lead spirits from the human world to the Soul Society or to damned them to the underworld, depends on how they were before they died. The two main spirits we deal with are wholes which are normal spirits and hollows which are bad spirits that eat human spirits living or dead. "

" Wait wait wait! Woah! Stop and rewind! " exclaimed the blonde, " Let me get this straight... " I stopped my explaination and listened to what he had to say.

" So you're sent by this Soul Society to our world to help spirits get to that place or send it to the underworld. And these things called hollows are spirits that are terrorizing the human world by eating living and dead human spirits? "

" Yes. "

" I don't believe that. " I was takenaback by his abrupt comment, I thought he actually understood all of this but I guess I was wrong. I furrowed my eyebrow and I frowned slightly.

" What is there not to believe? " I asked in a voice that was clearly annoyed.

" Well, basically everything. Apparently I'm not a person to believe in things like spirits of the departed, its unreasonable. "

" You see me don't you? Isn't that proof enough that you could see spirits? Like what you call a sixth sense? "

" Like I said, I don't believe in spirits either way. " I was getting REALLY annoyed with this little twit.

**Normal POV**

Himiko was at her last straw before she settled to the idea of teaching Ed a little respect. She rushed torwards him and with one hand, she performed a kido spell on him. The spell forced Ed's arms to be bound by an invisible force behind him which prevented him to move whatsoever. The force of it made Ed collaspe on his knees and remain there til further notice.

" Brother! " cried Alphonse, worried for his brother.

" Damn it! I can't move! What the hell did you do to me?! " shouted Ed, struggling to regain control of his arms again and his body. Himiko stood in front of him, smirking triumphantly with a shine of amusment glinting in her eyes as she watched Ed's useless struggles.

" Its called a kido. Its a demon art spell a shinigami can perform, it can either destory, heal or restrain someone. "

" Why you! " shouted Ed angrily, not liking the fact that he's being overpowered by a girl.

" Umm...he's not going to be like that forever right? " asked Al.

" No, of course not. The spell will eventually wear off in a couple of hours or if I choose to remove it. " Himiko smirked in reply, enjoying every moment of Ed struggling.

" Undo it right now! " demanded Ed.

" Or what? You won't be able to do anything as long as the kido is still active so what harm could you do to me? I've lived ten of your lifetime, I could kill you on the spot if I wanted to for your ignorance if it weren't for my orders so you should be grateful for that. "

" How's that even possible? " questioned Al, " That'll make you at least 150 years old! "

" Its complicated. " replied Himiko, she turned back to the struggling Ed, " I wouldn't struggle if I were you. It's useless and it'll only cause damage to your soul. " At that warning, Ed stopped struggling.

" Now, as long as you be a good little boy, I'll undo the spell so you could just leave. Ok? "

" HEY WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO LITTLE THAT HE COULD BE SQUISHED BY AN ANT?!?!?!?!? " shouted Ed rather loudly. Himiko flinched at the level of noise he was making and waited for him to calm down so she wouldn't have to deal with his hissy fit if she let him go. After a few more minutes of waiting, Ed finally calmed down from his rants.

" Are you done? " asked Himiko with her arms crossed.

" Yes... " muttered Ed almost inaudibly. Himiko sighed and undid the kido with a simple hand sign and Ed was free to move again. He stood up and brushed off the dirt on his clothes.

" You should get going, the hollow that is prowling around here might show up anytime soon. It's dangerous. " But before Ed had a chance to reply, a deep howling echoed around them. Himiko gripped her zanpakuto and scanned the area around quickly, " You have to go, now. I can handle this by myself. " Just then, the hollow crashed through one of the warehouses. It resembled what looked like a lizard but what's suppose to be the hind legs was replaced by eight legs that looked like it belonged to a spider. And of course, it had a mask on its face with red markings on it.

" Get outta here now! " shouted Himiko for the last time as the hollow charged right torwards them. Ed and Al began to back away and ran the opposite direction as Himiko stood her grounds. The two dashed around a warehouse but were confronted by yet another hollow, one that looked like a giant with a mask for its face.

" Brother, what do we do? These are spirits, do you think our alchemy will work against them? " asked Alphonse, backing away slowly as the hollow advanced torwards them.

" I don't know Al but it's worth a shot! " Ed said and clapped his hands together and transmuted his automail arm to a single blade. He charged torwards the hollow and slashed at it with his blade but like Al had said, he passed right through it. Stumbling to regain his balance, Ed was obviously had no luck in defeating the hollow.

" Ok..Maybe that wasn't such a good idea...but let's try this! " Ed transformed his blade back to its normal self and charged head on at the monster that was looking for him. 

" Brother are you insane?! " Shouted Al worriedly. Without giving an answer back, Ed clapped his hand when he neared the hollow and pressed them both against its large legs. The monster gave a howl and surprisingly enough, its body started to dissolve like its been struck by acid.

" What did you do? " asked Al as he ran up to his brother, glancing at the spot where the monster once stood.

" Easy, since spirits are made out of ectoplasm, I changed the substance of it using alchemy to beat the hollow! Pretty cool right? " Ed grinned. Al sweatdropped a bit but was nonetheless thankful that they know some way to get rid of monster spirits.

" Anyways, now that we have nothing to fear, let's go find that Soul Reaper..." Without waiting for an answer from Al, he took off running with Al racing to catch up with him. Once they arrived back where they left however, there was no sign of the girl anywhere. Walking into the area more, Ed scanned around to see any signs that she might've left. Walking ahead a bit more, Ed continued his search with Al closely following him. After a moment of walking around, they finally came across a figure that was slouching against one of the warehouses.

" Hey! " called out Ed before he ran torward the figure, upon closer inspection, it was the same girl except this time, she was wounded. The shinigami looked up from resting and gave a tired glance at Ed.

" You again? " she breathed.

" Be thankful we found you, you're badly hurt..." retorted Ed, " Wait a minute, if you're a Soul Reaper than how come you can still get wounded...? " The copper haired girl heaved a tiring sigh at Ed's question but shook her head.

" Its complicated..." was her only answer.

" We can take you back to get you treated. We can't exactly leave you here by yourself..." offered Al.

" I guess we can't..." muttered Ed, less than happy about that fact, " And if you don't mind asking...What's your name? "

" Its Himiko..." Was her last reply before she fainted.


	6. Job Shadowing

**Chapter Six: Job Shadowing**

The first thing Himiko noticed when she woke up earlier the following day was that she was on a bed, in a very unfamiliar room and was sore all over. Squinting her eyes a bit, she slowly rose to a sitting position on the bed while blocking the brightly shining sun from her face. After a while, she slowly lowered her hand to take in her surroundings.

The room was rather small and plain. Nothing special; just two beds, one being occupied by her, a dresser and that's just about it. Slinging her legs off the bed, she glanced around for her zanpakuto. Once spotting the sword, she prepared to get up to retrieve it when she suddenly felt gravity upon her. Letting out a slight yelp, she braced herself to meet the floor beneath her. Himiko's fall was soon halted when something came in the way to steady her. Glancing up, Himiko was met with brilliant golden eyes clashing with her own reddish copper ones.

Finally realizing that she was too caught up in getting her missing katana, she didn't realize someone came into the room the moment she got up. Himiko blinked, confused but not before finally figuring out who caught her; Edward. She got out of his grasp around her waist and used the bed's headboard to keep herself up. A moment of silence passed through the two occupants in the room, Himiko refused to look at Ed who was standing in the same spot, waiting for her to say something. Getting tired of the awkward silence, Himiko decided she mind as well say something.

" What are you doing here...? " 

" ...Just came to check up on you...You should still be resting after nearly falling out of bed. "

Himiko snorted a bit by the fact that someone she barely knows gives a care about her well-beings. She hobbled over a bit, wincing ever so slightly by the prickling pain caused from her wounds, before finally sitting herself back on the bed. She rested her gaze on Edward, who in turn, stared back at her calmly. Both pair of eyes were trying to figure the other out but the staring contest ended when the window had flung open.

The attention was then turned to a girl with shoulder length copper brown hair who had entered the room. She stood up straight from a crouching position after jumping into the room so abruptly. Her familiar reddish copper eyes settled on the female shinigami.

" I'm s-sorry for b-being late..." The girl spoke so softly and almost inaudible. It's obvious to anyone that she's shyest of the shy and maybe not to mention nervous.

" Its alright Rin...At least you found me..." was the reply from Himiko. Edward stared in disbelief, glancing back and forth between the two girls. Not only was it disturbing that one of them entered the room through the least convenient way, they both looked exactly identical with the exception of different clothing. Ed took a good look at each of them as they stared back at him on wonderment. The second of the two had half closed eyes, a slight quizical expression that made her look like an innocent child and was continuously fiddling with her fingers**(A/N: Like hinata from naruto when she's shy lol) **The Himiko sitting on the bed had a more stern facial expression, sharp eyes and looked just about ready for anything.

Ed was more than confused. Eyes widen in shock, he finally found his voice to speak what was on his mind.

" What the hell?! T-There's two of you?! " Emphasizing his message by pointing an accusing finger at Himiko. The girl only snorted and said simply.

" It's not another me, its just a me in a different form..."

" ...I don't get it.. "

" It's called a gigai, a sort of vessel for us shinigami when we're in the human world. It allows us to make human contact with others in this world and are also used in case of emergency when a shinigami's spirit power are low. "

" ...Oh...but if you're here...then who's that? " asked Ed, jabbing a thumb to the second Himiko.

" That's Rin..A mod soul which are like replacements when we're out of the gigai. It makes the gigai have a life of its own to keep the gigai occupied so its not suspicious if its out in public. "

Edward slowly nodded, letting the newly discovered information sink in. While he was thinking to himself about all of this, Himiko merged back with her gigai, took out the soul candy that was in her mouth and disposed of it. She fixed up the red headband in her hair while dusting off dirt from her jeans and white sweater**(A/N: So basically she's still wearing the same clothes in the beginning of the story) **

Himiko stared at Edward who was clearly too spaced out to notice anything new. Crossing her arms, she finally decided that she was going to snap him out of it, seeing as how he's not capable of doing it himself.

" Ahem... "

Edward snapped his head up from his downward gaze, clearly surprised that the gigai from before wasn't so shy looking, " Oh, uh you're Himiko now right? "

" Yes... " sighed Himiko.

" Ok, well...umm...wanna head to breakfast then? "

" Sure... " shrugged Himiko as she made her way out the door, limping here and there and cursing under her breath lowly. Edward, who looked amused by her efforts, couldn't help but smile a bit.

" You coming or not? " called back the copper haired girl. Edward dropped his smile, feeling a little emberassed but thankful that no one caught him.

" Yea, coming.. " called out Edward before also walking out of the room. As they both reached the kitchen where Al was making breakfast, unbeknowist to the both of them that somone had been spying on them.

**Al's POV**

I narrowly made it back just in time before Ed and Himiko came through the door. I was trying really hard not to seem out of place while making breakfast since I couldn't help but resist the urge to giggle at what I just saw earlier. Right when Ed had left to check up on Himiko, I couldn't help but follow him to see if he'll do anything. I was surprise myself to find Himiko already awake but what surprised me the most was when Ed had caught her from falling.

Just that tiny scene reminded me of something from a romance movie. I didn't think they'd realized how close their faces was and how transfixed their eyes were on each other either. It took everything I had in me to not burst out laughing. After they broke apart, I witnessed the whole two Himiko thing and had already caught the explaination she gave to Ed. When I heard the cue to leave, I immediately rushed out as fast as I could back into the kitchen and continued to make breakfast.

As I turned to make the pancakes, I couldn't help but grin inwardly, knowing that I had something against Ed when the time calls for it.

**Back To Normal POV**

After the two had finished breakfast, Ed got up from the table and started to head out of the door while Al followed.

" Himiko you stay here, we'll be back later. "

" No, I'm coming with you. " Himiko replied back, her eyes slightly narrowing.

" But it's something important that doesn't involve you, it'll be quick so just stay here. "

" No. " Ed had an anime vein on his head by this time, he was just about his last straw before he would explode. Al sweatdropped, sensing his brother's temper rising very quickly.

" Can't you just wait here?! It'll be quick! "

" And like I said, I'm coming with you because I have no purpose staying here anyways. " Himiko retorted, crossing her arms.

" And you have no purpose coming with me either! " Ed's features had showed nothing but annoyance. Himiko on the otherhand, was clearly not effected by his growing temper.

" Well at least I would have something to do other than stay here and be a nanny. "

" As a matter of fact, there you go! You've got something to do! Watch our dorm then while we're out. " Grinned Ed.

" What?! I am not tolerating something like this! Do I look like a house maid to you?! " Now it was Himiko's turn to fume with anger and annoyance. Ed only shrugged and proceeded to walk out the door, all in a while, pushing Al out too.

" Just don't have too much fun without us! Bye! " Called Ed before slamming the door shut, dragging Al to run with him. Himiko gritted her teeth and glared at the wooden door. She turned on her heels and headed straight for the window. Opening it, she jumped out with ease and landed on the street in a crouch. Luckily, everyone was too busy to notice her freefall from the dorm room. She stood up straight and began to look around for the short blonde boy and his tin can brother.

**At Mustang's Office**

Ed didn't even take the time to knock on the door or inform anyone that he's seeing Col. Mustang right now. He just slammed opened the door and walked right in.

" Ok Mustang, I checked out the warehouses. "

" And..? " Mustang said, looking amused.

" It was the most pointless thing I've ever done in my life! " shouted Ed finally. Mustang only chuckled.

" Well at least you know how I felt like when Fuery thought there's a warehouse 13 and that it was cursed and what not. " Ed only grew more angrier at the man in front of him who looked like who couldn't have a care in the world. It took Ed all his strength to calm himself so he can ask Mustang the next thing on his mind.

" Dr. Marco, do you know who he is? "

" Hm? Who? "

" Dr. Marco. "

" ...Never heard of him. " Ed gritted his teeth, he knew Mustang was lieing. The name only crossed to him because he looked it up on one of the documents he found in the library the other day. It was the only lead he had and he knew Mustang would know.

" Look, I know you're keeping something from me. But I'm going to find out because no matter what, you're not stopping me from getting the Philospher stone. " Edward gave Mustang one last glare before leaving his office, Mustang remained unfazed and turned his chair so it faced the window. From there, he pondered in his thoughts as he stared out onto the busy military grounds.

**With Ed.**

As soon as Ed left the door with Al following, the only thing on his mind was how to beat the information he needed out of Mustang. Dr. Marco was his only solid lead on what he wanted and the only thing stopping him was none other than Mustang. Edward had tried his hardest to avoid confronting Mustang about it but Dr. Marco's documents when he was in the military are all prohibited to anyone.

He was snapped out of his thoughts when a voice spoke up.

" What are you doing? " Ed jumped back, surprised at how sudden it happened. When he looked at who the voice belonged to, it was none other than the girl he tried to ditch in his dorm.

" Wait wha?! How'd you find me?! " He asked, pointing an accusing finger at her.

" I have my ways. "

" But how'd you get in without everyone noticing...It's sorta clear that you don't belong in the military. " pointed out Al, also surprised at her sudden appearance.

" The window... "

Ed sweatdropped, how can this girl climb a story high window?! After a long silence, Himiko spoke up.

" I've been rather curious to ask, what's a Philospher stone? " Ed was takenaback as did Al. A moment of hesitation swept through Ed's mind but he finally replied.

" Where'd you hear that? "

**Sorry for the most lamest cliffie but i cudnt think of anything else. And im having a bit of writers block AND just recently reformatted my comp... AND i got some requests for a diff story so i apologize that this story will take longer to be updated...i'll TRY to get bak to it as soon as possible**


	7. Complicated, I'll Never Understand

**Chapter Seven: Complicated; I'll Never Understand**

" I heard you talking about so I'm curious to know.." Himiko replied with a shrug. Ed sweatdropped and just waved it off with his hand.

" It's nothing for you to worry about.. "

" Hmph, fine be that way. "

" Wow Fullmetal, never knew you'd be the type to flirt with girls, especially outside of my office.. " Came a voice that held a lot of amusement in it. Ed turned around and shot a glare at the raven haired man standing in the doorway. Himiko raised an eyebrow, looking from Ed and the man who just came.

" Shut it Mustang and I wasn't flirting with her! "

" So who is she? " Mustang asked jerking a thumb over to Himiko who stood off to the side with her arms crossed.

" A friend of mine and ONLY a friend. Himiko, Mustang, Mustang Himiko. "

" A pleasure to meet you, Himiko. " Mustang said smoothly as he made his way to her. He took her hand and in a charming way, kissed it.

" Pleasure is mine, Mustang. " smiled Himiko.

" You can call me Roy..."

" Of course..."

Ed stood aside with Al, who obviously does not look impressed. In fact, Ed was about to snap for who knows what reason. Or maybe it was the fact that Mustang was the one flirting with a girl in front of his own office. Yeah, that's right, Ed decided to settle on that. But he couldn't just stand there and let this flirt fest go on in front of him, it made him sick. So he quickly went up to Himiko, took her hand away from Mustang's grasp and quickly headed out.

" Gotta go Mustang. Good bye! " With that, he pulled Himiko out of the building with Al following.

" Wait for me brother! "

Mustang stood puzzled a bit but then smirked, ' _Ha, Fullmetal has a crush...I'm so blackmailing him.' _

_-_

_" _ Well isn't he a charming man..." muttered Himiko, staring back at the office where they had left. Ed annoyed, turned her head to stare forward while they were walking.

" He's like that around women. So I wouldn't go gah-gah over him just yet. "

" Hm, men here on earth aren't really different from the one in Soul Society. Well only one person I know acts like that..."

" Heh, if I were you I would stay away from him. " replied Ed with his arms behind his head. Himiko looked at Ed strangely.

" You know I can handle myself fine on my own. "

" Pfft. I'm sure you can but I'm just sayin... " Himiko was still giving Ed that strange look, it puzzled her that he seems to care about her a little too much. It was...odd. She sighed inwardly, she'll never understand men, whether they were dead or not. A howl in the atmosphere and it seems that Ed and Al had heard it too.

" A hollow?! " asked Al worriedly, glancing from each direction to see if he could spot it. Himiko took out her black and blue cellphone and flipped it open. A flashing dot is shown on the screen which showed that there was indeed, a hollow near by.

" I'm afraid so..." Himiko said gravely, not really in the mood to deal with a hollow at the moment. Ed also looked alerted, Himiko closed her eyes calmly and and shut her phone. She quietly listened to where the hollow will be appearing and after a while, her eyes snapped open.

" It's to the right! " And as if on cue, the hollow appeared. It resembled something like a lion but it had on a white mask and a horn was sticking out on its forehead along with a spiked tail. Edward took a step back as the hollow spotted them from afar and began to charge. Just when he was about to transmute his automailed arm to a blade, Himiko stopped him.

" Both of you actually stay back this time! "

" The last time we did that, we found you half dead! So hell no! " Himiko growled at Edward's stubbornness. It was her duty as a shinigami to take care of hollows like these every day. And plus, she had more experience then he did.

' _I didn't think I'll need to use this so soon. ' _Thought Himiko as she took out an all too familiar rabbit dispenser, ' _I'll be sure to thank Rukia for this..Though she was the one who insisted that I should try Chappy but seeing its perky character, sorta scared me. ' _ Popping the gikon pill into her mouth, her soul was forced out of the gigai and the body had a life of its own.

" Keep him back, " Commanded Himiko to the gigai, drawing her zanpakuto, " Al don't you dare try getting involved. " Al put his hands up in defense, clearly not wanting to anger the female shinigami. Edward was none too pleased that she was going to fight the monster alone.

" Hey wait just a minute! " He shouted but was stopped by Himiko's gigai. It pounced onto Edward abruptly, knocking him over and getting close to his face.

" Wha?! "

" Pwease step aside! "

" WHAT?!?!?! " The Chappy controlled gigai pinned Edward down face first on the ground, having a strong hold on both his arms and sitting on top of his legs so that he wouldn't move or squirm. During all of this, Himiko had rushed towards the hollow and was at the moment, fighting and dodging its claws. The hollows tails whipped viciously at Himiko who managed to dodge it by using flashstep. With a quick swipe, Himiko had managed to cut off the tail. As it howled in pain, she took the time to deliver the final blow and the hollow slowly started to disintegrate. Sighing, Himiko placed her sword back into its case and made her way back to Ed, Al and Chappy/her gigai.

" Get the hell off of me!! OWW!! That hurts!! " shouted Edward as his arms was being twisted into a very odd angle.

" You shuts up before I make you. " retorted Himiko's gigai as she whacked him on the head.

" I'm going to kill you when I get my hands on you! "

" You have the wight to remain silence! "

" Careful you don't break his arm..." Al said in a meek voice while watching his brother in pity being held down.

" Okay I think you can let him go now. People are starting to stare..." It was indeed true, everyone on the streets were staring strangely at the three, seeing as how Himiko was invisible to the human eye. Chappy or Himiko's gigai, glanced up at her master and pouted a bit.

" Buts its funny. "

" You can play with him some other time.." sighed Himiko, not really getting why this was the most popular mod soul for female shinigamis in Soul Society. Sure the little thing was cute and speaks like a child just learning to talk but it sure does make someone look out of character.

" Yayyyy!! Bye byes shorty!! " exclaimed Chappy, getting off of Edward. Bad move. In Himiko's opinion, she could've at least pinned him down when she called him 'shorty,' otherwise...

" WHO YOU CALLIN SHORTY?! HUH?! WHAT MAKES YOU ANY DIFFERENT?! YOU'RE EVEN SHORTER THAN ME!!! "

" Hey!! I'm aware of that so don't need to rub it in my face! " shouted Himiko back, annoyed that her height was once again, insulted. Even back in Soul Society, she was one of the shortest shinigami's. Hitsugaya-taicho, Yachiru-fukutaicho being the other two shortest shinigamis. It sorta frustrates Himiko that probably the only person she was taller than in Soul Society was indeed the small pink haired vice-captain. But thinking of that made her even more frustrated because Hitsugaya-taicho was, like Edward, taller than her by an inch. AN INCH. Himiko inwardly blushed, thinking about the white haired captain**(A/N: OOOHHH maybe a LOVE TRIANGLE?? XD who knows...who knows... ) )**

" Uhh...Himiko...? " asked Edward, unsure as to why Himiko looked so out of it. During the time she was thinking, she was seemingly getting more and more pissed at something. But then it later changed when a small tint of pink coloured her cheeks. That was what confused the three that were standing in front of Himiko, waiting for her to talk.

" Himiko-sama?! " asked her gigai, getting worried and teary eyed at the same time.

" Uhh..I think she's thinking..." pointed out Al.

" Yeah...about what? She looks out of it, she doesn't even realize we're talking about her! Hey Himiko!!! " exclaimed Ed, waving his hand in front of her face. Finally, Himiko blinked and looked confusedly at her companions who stared back at her just as confused.

" What are you staring at? "

" HIMIKO-SAMA YOU'RE AWIGHT!!! " cried Chappy, hugging her master and crying out loudly while saying over and over again how glad she was that Himiko was normal again. The female shinigami sighed and merged back with the gigai, taking the pill out of her mouth and disposing it.

" Let's head back home, I'm getting tired of beating these hollows ever since I came here..." Sighed Himiko. Edward could only nod and started walking again with Himiko and Al trailing behind. Ed's thoughts wandered over back to when Himiko was blushing or was she blushing? Fever? No she was definitely blushing. But why? Edward rolled his eyes at this inwardly, he'll never understand women.

**Next Morning**

" Who? "

" The Führer, who's the political and military ruler of Amestris holding the official title of President. "

" Okay, what about him? "

" He's approved my idea through Mustang that we'll duel each other for an assesment. If I win he'll give me information on Dr. Marco and he'll take care that kitten Al found on the streets today... "

" Uh huh...Who's Dr. Marco..? "

" I don't know yet that's why I need to beat Mustang so he'll tell me. "

" I see.." Himiko answered boredly, not really getting why Dr. Marco was so important. Maybe it was about that stone, the stone that Ed keeps being quiet about whenever Himiko asked. She had asked Al but he too was hesitant to tell her and later on, switches to another subject to avoid being questioned again. So Himiko learned that she's not going to get any answers from them. It was really frustrating, she has no idea what's going on whatsoever.

" So when is this fight? " Himiko asked after a moment of silence. She was lazing on one of the beds in the Elric brother's room. Al was reading a book, sitting on the floor peacefully while Ed was sitting on the other bed polishing his automail arm.

" This afternoon. " Himiko sighed, starting a conversation with him when he's so focused on winning was proven pointless. But what intrigued Himiko was the automail arm and leg he has. She's never seen anything like that before, was this the method that they used in this world when someone loses a limb? She can't imagine how they would actually put that thing on as a replacement or how anyone would be able to move around with a chunk of metal on them. Its like running with weights. But then the thought of how Edward got those artificial limbs came into her mind. It wouldn't be right of her to ask, that would be rude.

There were so many questions that popped up into her mind right then about these two brothers. Himiko moved her copper coloured eyes to look from Ed to Al. But there was one thing she could tell about them just by looking; they had a dark past to end up like this. Of course, Himiko has her fair share of secrets too but decided to tell them when the time is right. Just like how they'll answer the many questions she has about them.


End file.
